da betano casino： Arsenal could already be considering their options for the January transfer window, as Mikel Arteta hopes to bolster his squad for the second half of the 2023/24 campaign.
da 888casino： The Spaniard has seen his side start the season well, however the looming narrative of last term’s lack of squad depth is already plaguing the favoured XI.
Injuries to key players and little room to manoeuvre rotation has provided an essence of the 2022/23 Premier League season’s shortcomings, in which the Gunners missed out on the title on the home straight as their lack of quality outside of the XI was exploited.
This week, the Mirror explained that the north Londoners will target reinforcements for their midfield in the upcoming January window, with £105m summer acquisition Declan Rice being the only player not to be absent from injury at present in Arteta’s favoured middle of the park trio.
Arsenal's January transfer targets
As highlighted by John Cross, via The Mirror, the manager’s primary target in deep midfield is said to be Aston Villa dynamo Douglas Luiz, a player the Gunners failed to sign last summer.
The Brazilian has a current market value of €60m (£52m), however is poised to cost even more due to his importance to Unai Emery’s side, and the fact that the 25-year-old penned a new deal with the Villans in October 2022.
Away from the Premier League, another potential target has been identified in the form of a player well-known elsewhere in the Midlands, with former Wolves midfielder Ruben Neves reported to be of interest at Arsenal.
A report from talkSPORT suggested that Arteta and Edu could opt to challenge Newcastle United for the signature of the 26-year-old, who could return to the top-flight on a loan deal from Al-Hilal just five months after his move to Saudi Arabia.
The upcoming vote to determine whether Premier League clubs can block loaning players within their ownership groups could be detrimental to the Magpies’ hopes and could hand the Gunners a boost in their bid to sign the Portugal international.
The report from talkSPORT also acknowledged Edu as a ‘long-term admirer’ of the former Molineux magician.
Ruben Neves’ time in the Premier League
In the summer of 2017, Wolves captured Neves from Porto when the club were in the Championship, making for confusing reading in Portugal as the midfielder traded in the Liga Portugal for the English second-tier to join Nuno Espirito Santo’s revolution.
The 1997-born gem only needed a single season in the Championship to assist the Old Gold in gaining promotion, as his importance in Nuno’s side became evident as he flourished in playing among the physicality of the English game.
In the Premier League, Neves’ consistency never dipped, as his presence in the engine room inspired the growth of the team, with his combative yet elegant edge beneficial to both the defence and attack.
A quality ball striker and fine passer of the ball, the 44-cap Portugal international was once lauded as being “on another planet” to his teammates by journalist Steve Madeley, reinforcing his quality while at Molineux.
Average passes
Rank in squad
63.8
1st
55.4
1st
53.2
2nd
54.9
1st
58.5
1st
58.1
1st
As highlighted in the table above, Neves’ ability to dictate play in the Midlands was impossible to ignore, with him topping the charts for the majority of his career at Wolves for his average rate of passes per game in the Premier League and Championship.
The former Porto maestro’s contribution to goals was far from his greatest asset, however he had the quality to step up when needed and prevail as the Old Gold’s shining light time after time.
In 177 Premier League appearances, the 26-year-old netted 21 goals and recorded nine assists, with the majority of his quality coming prior to goals in having the intelligence to act as the metronome in the engine room to filter out positive sequences of play.
Last season in the league, no midfielder averaged more touches in the defensive third than Neves (24.15 per 90), reinforcing his presence in transitioning play and versatility to conform to all roles required when playing as a box-to-box type midfielder.
What Ruben Neves could offer to Arsenal
In the absence of Thomas Partey and the departure of Granit Xhaka, Arsenal’s midfield is looking like a shell of last season’s solidity, with only Rice’s presence the current reliable source of consistent quality.
While the sale of Xhaka couldn’t be avoided as the 31-year-old wanted to return to Germany, Arteta lost a key part of his squad, in a player that effortlessly orchestrated the pace and direction of play, complimented by the anchoring presence of Partey.
As relayed this week by renowned journalist Fabrizio Romano, the Switzerland international tops the charts in Europe for the most final third passes (127) and progressive passes (119), exaggerating just what Arsenal are missing in his absence.
Back in the summer of 2021, football.london described Neves as being the ‘perfect upgrade’ to Xhaka, who looked poised to join Roma after falling out with the north Londoners before rebuilding the bridges.
The duo have a similar approach to their play, both displaying sturdy assets in protecting the back line, as well as having the composure and quality to dictate play ahead of them thanks to an innate reading of the game and ability to distribute the ball.
Ruben Neves
Granit Xhaka
Thomas Partey
Declan Rice
82.1%
84.7%
87.2%
86.5%
6.50
5.89
8.37
6.60
2.36
1.02
2.54
2.17
1.49
0.45
1.01
1.73
6.02
4.45
8.37
6.41
2.38
3.31
2.57
2.75
43.2%
39.0%
48.1%
62.0%
In relation to finding a suitable replacement for the role that Xhaka so confidently made his own at the Emirates, Neves has the potential to hand Arteta a new source of quality in the midfield to act as the heir to the Swiss maestro.
The Portugal international averaged a higher rate of progressive passes and provided more cover in the defensive areas than the Bayer Leverkusen whiz in the Premier League last term, reinforcing claims that he could fill the void.
Only time will tell if Arsenal are serious in their pursuit to sign Neves, who would undoubtedly be a quality asset to introduce back into the Premier League.